“There is no one to help. The women do this alone,” Elco said to her as he lay down in front of her bars and looked toward Esper’s cell with a huff. She could see a hint of large, spiked scales running down his back from the glow within the room.
“W-What…” Seda asked, as concern and fear spread through her like spiders crawling up her legs. They impregnate women and leave them to give birth alone? If the women die, do they feed them to the monsters?
“Where do the babies go? Where are the men who come to the Camp?” she asked Elco, her voice trembling with the sudden fear that her father was no longer here.
“The men don’t last long. They’re always food. The women are kept in these cells to produce children, and the cycle continues. I do not know where the children go. I do not think they go to Joro or the monsters.”
Seda gasped, her breath coming in shallow, painful gasps. Her father was gone. “But… But… Sometimes people go back to Joro after being here.”
Maybe her father was taken back to Joro since he was so important?
Elco waited to respond and calmly said, “That is just for hope, Seda the Spoken. When you plant a little hope in people, you encourage conformity and make it easier to manipulate the masses.” He turned to look at her again, and the crimson glow illuminated her cell. “They only send back the most broken.”
Seda walked to the bed and sank onto it, her legs feeling heavy asif made of lead. The bed’s springs squeaked loudly under her weight. She felt defeated, alone, and scared. She heard the agonizing cries coming from Esper and felt her heart sink to her stomach.
There was nothing she could do to help. She was chained inside a cell, guarded by a massive creature, in a prison built to farm humans. How had Mordred gotten away with this?
Her heart sank even lower as she thought about how her brother and mom would react to the news. She couldn’t imagine the horrors her father must have seen before he died, or the pain he must have endured. Then she thought about Cahir—his handsome smile and tender eyes. How he was always so gentle around her, never overstepping, always willing to help in any way he could, but most of all, how he made her laugh and helped her face her fears. Cahir was her home.
She wanted to go home. She wanted Cahir.
She thought about the pain and anger in his eyes as he tore Michael apart, feeling satisfied to see Michael suffer. He made her endure agony all those years ago.
He got what he deserved.
An eye for an eye. A heart for a heart. He hurt her, and he got to suffer from the trauma he inflicted on her, causing her to live in fear because of his and Alexi’s violations.
Alexi. She would not let him touch her. She would not cower in fear when he returned for her. She would never go willingly for him. She would fight, in honor of Cahir, who showed her what it means to stand up for someone you care for, to stand up for yourself.
Esper let out a loud cry, and Seda stood up, rushing toward the bars without hesitation. Elco opened his eyes at her and growled, but made no move to stop her.
“Esper! You got this. I’m right here. I’m with you. You’re not alone,” Seda encouraged.
“Not alone,” Elco repeated, softly humming the words. He looked at Seda and closed his eyes.“Finally…not alone.”
The sounds of Esper’s pain continued through the night. The orange, flashing light kept reminding them that something was happening. No one checked on them; no one brought food or water, or even came to bother them.
They were alone, yet not completely; they had each other within these dark walls.
Chapter 21
Seda
Warmth radiated against the walls as Elco stayed close to Seda’s cell. Esper’s screams echoed through the night, and Seda stayed awake, listening intently and offering support to her friend. No one got any rest, not even Elco.
“I’ve heard this happen thousands of times. Her child will be here soon,” Elco told Seda as he studied her.
Seda nervously chewed her nails but stopped when she tasted the dried blood on them. She felt weak from lack of sleep, and dehydration was draining her strength. She stood and slowly moved closer to the bars again, with Elco watching her curiously as she drew nearer.
“Where do you come from?” he asked her, sniffing the air aroundher again.
Esper’s cries faded, and Seda looked at Elco’s shadowed form curiously.
“I’m from Joro, Elco,” she responded.
Obviously.
“Were you born within Joro?”
